Reflections for the Working Soul: Sinner-friendly

Monday, March 11, 2013

Sinner-friendly

+RWS 537 March 10, 2013
4th Sunday in Lent

Gospel: Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32
"This man welcomes sinners and eats with them"

Sinner friendly
By Bishop Precioso D. Cantillas, SDB, DD

One of the accusations leveled against Jesus was His being 'sinner friendly', as the selected verse above has simply stated. For Jesus to be the Savior and Redeemer of sinful mankind, going after sinners with love and mercy is not out of order; in fact, it has to be so for Jesus. And it has to be the same with anyone who wish to follow him, workers included. An essential part of any worker's activity then is to see how sinner friendly he is and could be at work.
Everyone does commit mistakes no matter how careful he can be. At work, failures are costly; those who fail will bear the cost heavily, sometimes at the risk of losing their jobs. One of the painful loss of the sinner at work is the loss of trust and esteem of the boss and his co-workers who are expecting the best from everyone. When good performance is valued mostly in terms of profit, it would be very difficult to be compassionate with those who do not deliver properly or with those who inflict heavy losses to the company. The usual way to deal with those who fail at work is to count the financial or material cost of the failure than the value of the worker as a human person. In such perspective, the disciplinary or administrative actions would most likely be in favor of the employer or company rather than the errant worker. The ideal approach I think, is to consider the human rights of both the failing worker and the management. Thus, a just legal system governing labor and relationships at work would be needed to solve the situation in a most human way.

But, there are times that what is legal may not necessarily be moral. What Jesus did to sinners may not be legal, in terms of human considerations, much less in terms of financial and material ones. Yet, everyone at work may imitate the Lord's example especially in moments of failures and sins.

Power lunch

By Teresa R. Tunay, OCDS

A “power lunch” is modern-day term coined to describe a working lunch shared by decision makers to discuss important matters that would hopefully lead to, say, closing a deal. The real aim of the host (the one who invites and who’s footing the bill) is to win the guest (could be a client or a partner) over to his side. He is well aware that steaks and wine can alter a man’s judgment to favor his cause more swiftly than a meeting over the conference table in a cold office with nothing to warm the discussions but a bottomless cup of coffee.

Power lunches have become part and parcel of the corporate world, lubricating the wheels of business. When invited to one, the guest normally comes with an open mind—not prejudging the host’s intentions or even considering his host’s reputation, even when the host is known to be master of shady deals—for he is optimistic that something mutually beneficial could come from the encounter.

Coming to a power lunch with an open mind, however, does not mean somnambulating into a self-destructive transaction. The decision maker attending as guest at a power lunch represents his company; thus he has to keep the welfare of the company in mind, as well as the benefits to be gained for a greater group of people, like the workers and their families. He can be certain of positive results if he is armed not only with adequate and correct information affecting the matters to be discussed but also with an unclouded intelligence and sharp discerning skills. (It would be wise to keep the steak to matchstick box size and the wine to one glass; better yet, skip the wine for the healthier kalamansi juice). Clear thinking and his clean intentions will shield him from a malicious host’s wiles, and will enable him to foresee the wide-ranging and long-lasting effects of his decisions made over the power lunch. Getting ready for a power lunch? Take a hint from Jesus: He dined with sinners and tax collectors knowing—and determined to get—what He wanted. That is power.

No comments:

What they say about 'Reflections for the Working Soul', the book

Day in and out, the Inquirer brims with news. That's the Inquirer's strength: A frenzy of in-your-face news daily. Almost always the bad news. Then Reflections for the Working Soul happened every Sunday. Suddenly, we had (and have) an oasis of Good News. For reflection. For serenity. Not up there in the clouds. But right here in the dailiness of living and working with real people some of whom can really get on one’s nerves.

Thanks to Bishop Precioso D. Cantillas and Teresa R. Tunay. In three paragraphs or less, they offer a way and an attitude in the workplace not just for Sundays but for my day-to-day lifestyle to keep in touch with what works in relationships, including people one can barely stand working with. They sort out for me what’s important and really counts in life and living in the workplace as a microcosm of the real world.

So, I look forward eagerly to reading the Good News bylined by the bishop and Tunay. Because they speak to me personally about how to be most effective and productive at work while at the same time staying connected to the Good News, and thus staying in a state of serenity and grace. Providentially, their names—Precioso and Tunay (precious and true)—sum up their contributions to the development of the Inquirer as an instrument and institution of the Good News of the Lord.

—Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc
Editor-in-Chief, Philippine Daily Inquirer

From Bishop Rolly Tria Tirona:

Giving flesh and bones to our Christian faith has always been the challenge for every Christian. Translating belief in Christ into Christ-like action is extremely demanded in market and work places. Christian work ethics is the fruit of inspiration and not of pure legislation.

Reflections for the Working Soul, a weekly column of Ms Teresa Tunay and Bishop Precioso Cantillas in a newspaper section catering primarily to people at work, provides that inspiration for the many working people desirous to integrate their belief with their work.

These joint reflections make the Gospel teachings so reachable to busy people. Their insights help working people understand that they do matter in the transformation of our society and of our country. In their reflections, they show that work can lead to contemplation, while contemplation sanctifies and elevates their work to the heart of God.

I salute and congratulate Ms. Teresa Tunay and Bishop Precioso Cantillas for being the instruments of the Holy Spirit to warm and lift up the spirit of our working people.

Most Rev. Rolando J. Tria Tirona, OCD
Bishop Prelate of Infanta
15 April 2007, Divine Mercy Sunday

Carmelite priest Junjun Agruda says:

In the mountains, geologists and miners use the elegant term "angle of repose" to describe the precise angle at which a boulder will rest on the side of a hill, rather than tumble downward. I think of that image as the point at which prayer and action meet. Every so often one of those boulders breaks loose, releasing potential energy in a crashing rockslide that permanently alters the landscape.

The creative ways in which Prayer and earthiness are wedded in these Relfections for the Working Soul forge a spirituality that makes room for piety as well as for activism. Bishop Precioso Cantillas and Ms. Teresa Tunay have grasped the nature of Prayer as partnership with God’s activity on earth. These reflections bring us to that "angle of repose", the place where contemplation and prayerful action meet. Thus in the process, the act of Prayer emboldens us to join the work of transforming the world into a place where the Father’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

—Fr. Mariano Agruda III, OCD
Provincial Superior,
Order of Discalced Carmelites, Philippines

Bishop Stude comments:

Two beautiful minds, talented persons very much respected, committed and sefless in their respective works, have gifted us with an inspiring and interesting book, Reflections for the Working Soul. The skillful authors—Bishop Precioso Cantillas and Ms. Teresa Tunay—make the Sunday Gospels more applicable, much alive in the work world. The inspiring book enhances spirituality in the workplace and imparts refreshing reflections which encourage and challenge one to make the workplace a ‘good soil’ (Mark 4,8) and to ‘bear fruit: some thirty, some sixty,and some one hundred’ (Mark 4,20).

Reading Reflections for the Working Soul is to know that the words of its gifted authors are their works, and their works are their witnessing for Jesus and His Gospels. With our works and in our places, Bishop Precioso Cantillas and Ms. Teresa Tunay take and turn us to ‘see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven’ (Matthew 5,16).

—Monsignor Ruperto Cruz Santos
Bishop of Balanga

From Monsignor Hernando Coronel:

The teamwork between Bishop Cantillas and Teresa Tunay is the application of the Second Vatican Council teaching regarding the transformation of society. A cleric and a layperson combined their personal insights to give light on the values needed in the workplace. Indeed, they have witnessed against a rat race world, a dog-eat-dog milieau, a corporate atmosphere of power and control. Their spirituality of the workplace heralds the values of the Gospel in the business setting, that it is important to pray before deciding, to seek God’s will before acting in the commercial sphere. Theirs is an advocating of building a faith community in the workplace where Christian principles reign and are lived out.

—Monsignor Hernando Coronel
Archdiocese of Manila

Fr. Mario Baclig, SDB, says:

If once we had worker-priests, now we have a genuine worker-bishop. And this book is proof of this. Bishop Cantillas is himself a worker; he grew up in Don Bosco Cebu getting his hands soiled and greasy in the machine shop. When he was nominated bishop, he had all set and ready a pastor’s staff that he had been fabricating for someone else. And now, a published compilation of his thoughts for workers. This is a precious gift for today’s workers, from a worker-bishop!

Teresa Tunay is his partner in this endeavor. She comes with her unique journalistic talent and creativity. But more than that, she brings in a rare sensitivity to the simple and often unnoticed lives of ordinary workers. Her love and concern for young workers has kept the Blue Collar magazine going despite all odds. I cannot wait to get hold of this book. How I wish that workers worldwide would have a similar privilege!

—Fr. Mario Baclig, SDB
Salesiana Publishers

From the late Fr. James Reuter, SJ:

The secret of doing anything well is to love what you are doing —to enjoy your job. If, when you wake each morning, you are eager to meet the challenge of this day; if your mind is filled with it, joyfully, when you are brushing your teeth, when you are in the shower, when you are drinking your coffee. . . . . .your work will be a smash! What these 'Reflections' do is to remind you that your work is an apostolate. . . you are serving the children of God. You might not have silver and gold, but what you have you give—yourself! And that is the most beautiful gift of all. This little book makes you realize that you are serving God. . . every day, every hour, every moment. . . . in the market place. It is worth reading—one set of reflections every day. It will fill your life with love. You will go to work smiling.

—Fr. James Reuter, SJ
Director, National Office on Mass Media for the Catholic Church in the Philippines